


The Blood and Bones Stolen

by VeteranKlaus



Series: Bloodstain [2]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Angst, FTM Levi, Gore, Levi centric, Levi's Past, M/M, PTSD, Tags to be added, Transgender Levi, Violence, eruri - Freeform, fear of the dark, mentions of Farlan, mentions of isabel - Freeform, mentions of kuchel - Freeform, slight AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-07
Updated: 2019-02-11
Packaged: 2019-10-20 15:24:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17624924
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VeteranKlaus/pseuds/VeteranKlaus
Summary: All they knew is to expect the worse. Some of them thought it'll be nothing; that they'd seen something that night, that it was a regular group of titans they'd encountered. Levi knew better. As they returned to that dreaded forest, blood flashed behind his eyelids and silent titans haunt his memory, and Levi knew that whatever secrets are in that forest, they're not supposed to know.SEQUEL TO BODY WAS MADE.Probably can be read as a stand-alone, though some things might not be explained. Recommend reading Body Was Made first.





	1. One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! So, as said in the summary, this is the sequel to Body Was Made, and follows pretty much directly after the ending of Body Was Made. I highly suggest reading that first if you haven’t already, and if you have, then I hope you enjoy the sequel and are ready to get some answers!

Hooves beat against solid ground like the beating of his heart. Erwin rode in front of him and, somewhere to the back of the small group of Scouts, Hange rode with them as well.

It was early morning and there was a chill in the air that nipped the tip of his ears and his nose, dusted his pale skin with a soft rose, but the sun that shone down was warm and welcoming. It did nothing to calm his mix of emotions, though. He didn’t feel any more confident in what they were doing than he had when he had insisted they do it, nor did he fully trust that going out to explore this was a good idea or not. That didn’t really matter, though; it was necessary.

He wasn’t that sure that the cadets with them understood what they were doing either. He’d probably explained it all in a jumble of words, half-assed explanations, retelling the story of the incident in the forest. The cadets probably thought he’d hit his head that badly and he’d hallucinated the entire thing. Maybe he had. He hoped he had, anyway, but he knew this was real.

Although he’d had a long time to recover and his wounds were no more than a small ache if he thoroughly pushed himself, or a blur in the distance, he suspected Erwin was still reluctant to push him. Any time a titan came near them either Hange or a cadet would be sent to finish it off when he could easily do it in half of the time it took them. It was irritating, Erwin thinking he was still weak and vulnerable, but he calmed himself with the promise that he’d need his strength in a day or two’s time.

They had short breaks to let the horses eat and drink, and to do the same themselves, until they reached the first base; a small settlement, only a few houses that were fairing rather well with being in titan territory. They set their horses up and Levi lingered around his, brushing his fingers along Fenrir’s soft coat and making sure she ate and got a drink. His fingers scratched by her ears and he muttered a few calming words to the mare. She was a good horse – a great horse – but she still wasn’t a fan of other horses or people.

There was a tenseness in the atmosphere that the cadets tried to kill with their chatter; sitting around each other and nibbling on their rations. Erwin was sitting off to the side, Hange and Moblit nearby him, and Levi weaved his way through the cadets to reach them.

The veterans greeted him with a small nod and Erwin offered him a bottle of water that he gratefully took.

“We’ll leave early again tomorrow morning,” Erwin said. “We can’t stay at the same place as we did last time; the fire probably burnt it all down. That house that you stayed in, is it big enough for all of us?” He asked, and Levi’s eyes drifted to Mikasa and Armin, now also looking back at him.

“There’s ten of us,” Levi said thoughtfully, “most likely not. It looked like a house for a family of three. If we moved some furniture… It’d be a tight fit, but possibly.” Mikasa stared at him as he spoke, but she gave a subtle nod before returning to her conversation with Armin and Eren.

It was a few hours ride to the house, presumably. He wasn’t exactly aware for the journey from the forest to the house to tell how long it was, but he knew it wasn’t as far away as their second base.

The Commander hummed thoughtfully and turned his eyes out of the window where the sun was setting beneath a hill. The sky was a collage of burning oranges and reds and it was, quite frankly, gorgeous. Levi pulled his eyes away from it and watched as the cadets with them began to light a few candles, pull the curtains shut to hide their movement and light from any titans that came close.

“How are horses in the forest?” Erwin asked, and Levi glanced to Hange.

“The trees are so close together that it’s hard for them to quickly manoeuver through them. We’d probably be better riding there and having some people watch them.”

He was surprised they managed to wind their horses as far as they did when they were in that forest, the trees so claustrophobically tight. How titans managed to make their way silently through them was beyond him, but they had had an abnormally thin frame.

 Levi zoned out of their conversation, only picking up the fact that Moblit and a couple of the cadets would stay to watch their horses out of the forest. Moblit discussed who he could take with him, Hange brought up a few things from when they had scouted the perimeter of the forest those months ago, and Levi folded his arms across his chest.

They ate their rations quietly and quickly, deep in thought with gazes wandering over the talkative cadets. It was late and they were tired after a full day of travelling, and so they were all basically half asleep, slumped against the wall and tucking into their sleeping bags. Levi decided he’d talk to them all tomorrow, when they were riding once more or when they reached that house they’d stayed in.

If he had to stay in the child’s room again, Levi thought he might just vomit.

Those days in that housed seemed like it had happened eons ago, but as if they had lasted eons themselves. He’d probably spent longer in the child’s bedroom than he had sleeping in his own bed, and he wasn’t looking forwards to seeing it again. His mouth twitched with a phantom pain from his thigh.

He wasn’t even entirely sure how long he spent there, how long he’d been unconscious, feverish. He hadn’t spoken to Mikasa or Armin much since, and they hadn’t spoken about what had happened there. It wasn’t exactly a topic that he wanted to discuss again.

Being so vulnerable in front of some cadets was far from Levi’s ideal week, and opening up the little bit that he had had left him on edge after he’d done it, but it had been months since he’d rambled about Isabel and Farlan, since they’d seen him head to toe, since he put his life in their hands and they’d had plenty chances to spill everything they’d seen and learned, but evidently they’d kept quiet, seeing as his life wasn’t ruined.

“I’ll take first watch,” Levi muttered, pushing himself off the wall and heading towards the door, stepping carefully around tired cadets and making his way outside. The cool air of the night greeted him, contrasting the warmth growing inside from the small fire and gathering cadets. There was a fair wind that pushed his hair out of his face and chilled his exposed skin, and it was beginning to get darker, just light enough for Levi to make out where he was launching his anchors from his ODM gear, hauling himself up to the roof where he settled in for a long night..

Usually, they took shifts overnight to watch out for titans; someone would keep watch for maybe two or three hours, and then swap out with someone else so they could catch some rest. With Levi, that usually wasn’t the case. On a good night at the base inside the walls, he got three hours of sleep. If he wasn’t going to eat, he might as well make himself useful and keep watch. And plus, a part of him was convinced that if he kept straining himself to keep his vision as good as it ever had been, then it surely wouldn’t be able to falter again.

Opening his eyes to see absolutely nothing had struck Levi and shocked him to his system like he never had been before. Making his way back to the walls and talking to other military police officers while being completely unable to see – well, if not for his grip on his composure, he probably would have been in shock from the past few days.

If he was slightly paranoid about permanently being blind, he thought he was justified.

There was little activity throughout the night, unsurprisingly. No lumbering titans or anyone flitting around, ready to set fire to this base, no silent titans creeping up. It rained lightly and Levi moved for shelter from the cold and rain, not enthusiastic about getting soaked while he was out. Upon the sun rising once more, Levi dropped down from his little perch and stretched out his slender limbs before ducking back inside.

The main room, once probably a large living room, was covered by cadets sprawled out across the floor in their sleeping bags. He saw a few people sitting up, just waking up and rubbing their eyes. Mikasa was rolling up her sleeping bag and Armin was crawling out of his. Reiner was trying to wake up Sasha with not much luck. Everyone looked slightly startled to see Levi suddenly stride in, and he gestured around.

“Get up and get ready,” he said, “we’ll be leaving soon.”

He continued through the mess of half-awake teenagers until he reached the door on the other side of the living room, leading to the small bedroom that the veterans were resting in. Although, resting might not be the correct term when Levi walked in to see them all sitting up, awake and dressed and speaking quietly

“So you all just leave me to wake up a group of teenagers?” He asked with a snort, closing the door and leaning against it.

“I thought you’d enjoy the task,” Erwin commented with a shrug of his shoulders and Levi snorted in response.

“Nothing happen overnight?” He asked, and Levi shook his head.

“Nothing,” he confirmed. There hadn’t been any movement at all overnight. Levi would have noticed if there had been anything.

Satisfied, Erwin nodded and pushed himself off the wall he’d been leaning against, triggering everyone else into action.

“Go help prepare the horses,” he said, “we move out as soon as possible.”

Levi tipped his head in a nod and was followed out by Hange and Moblit.

“Sort your things,” Levi said, once again weaving through the cadets who he thought he had trained better than this, still in varying poses on the floor and various levels of consciousness. He nudged one that he walked over with the toe of his boot, urging Jean to hurry out of his sleeping bag.

“Eat quickly or eat when we’re riding out. Sort your horses and be ready in fifteen minutes.”

The morning was still cold and dark, clouds threatening more rain or showers and there was a slight wind that chilled them and woke them up. Levi used some of his water outside to wash his face and hands before he made swift work of putting his horses gear back on and guiding her to get some food and drink.

Thankfully, it didn’t take much longer for everyone else to get themselves and their horses ready, and within twenty minutes everyone was trotting into formation on their horses. Mikasa and Armin rode at the front by Erwin to guide the way and Levi held up the back with Hange a few paces to his side.

It was a quiet ride. Levi and Hange were sharing a tense atmosphere that only Erwin and Moblit understood and the cadets were unwilling to ask. Hange tried to play it cool, but as they grew nearer the old house he, Mikasa and Armin had been stranded in, and subsequently near the forest. He could see it off in the distance, towering trees looking unimposing and normal. Levi all but glared at the silhouette of trees before continuing to turn and head towards the small house that would serve as their base for the next few days.

They encountered few titans, their presence quickly announced by Hange’s too-enthusiastic yell of “ten metre!” or such, and they were quickly cut down by any one of the scouts that was closest to them.

By the time they reached the little house atop the hill it had started to rain lightly and Levi was almost eager to set their horses up and make their way inside.

“How are all of us supposed to fit in here?” Reiner murmured, but they all filed inside and settled around the living/kitchen room, looking expectantly at the older veterans in the room. It was Erwin that broke the silence.

“There are a few things that I haven’t yet told any of you,” he said, eyes rolling over each cadet before settling on Levi. “Windows please, Levi,” he said, and the raven nodded and went on to check outside the house, the windows, and then drew the curtains as Erwin continued. “This isn’t such a simple search or team building mission. Ackerman, Arlert, you’re aware of the forest that I had you accompany Hange and Levi to a few months ago?”

Curious eyes turned to the two cadets, as that, too, had been covered up. After the purposeful fire, Erwin had taken it upon himself to keep everything simple and normal, and as far as the cadets had been concerned, Levi and Hange had left to survey ahead with Mikasa and Armin and they’d gotten ambushed by titans and split up. Nothing about scouting a forest had ever been mentioned to them until now.

“We have reason to believe that we were onto something inside that forest, especially concerning the titans.” Understanding flashed in the cadets’ eyes, and it seems they had also picked up on that. Erwin’s lips twitched and he voiced just that.

“Yes, sir. We did think it was odd… We’d scouted the entire perimeter and there was no way a titan could get in there with no trace,” Armin nodded, and Mikasa glanced at him.

“They were silent, too, sir. Completely silent in that forest,” she added, and Erwin nodded.

“Levi and Hange reported the exact same, and then some,” he confirmed. His eyes flicked towards Levi, and the raven tipped his head in a nod with a silent sigh. Beside him, Hange shifted excitedly as she remembered what Levi had contributed to the reports.

“We believe that the titans in that forest our another species, another kind of the titans than we’re familiar with. Physically and in their behaviour, they’re different.” He glanced at Erwin, who nodded minutely. “I witnessed one speak. We can only assume that these titans are more advanced and intelligent than the ones we know.”

The cadets were listening intently, wide eyed and curious.

“I’ve refrained from telling you any of this because we can’t be sure what this means, and if anyone else knows this, and if we shouldn’t. Is that understood?” He asked, with a silent question following. He was satisfied to receive serious nods.

Erwin leaned back, pinching the blue curtain by a window behind him to peer outside.

“Hange will be staying here with Armin to watch for anything or anyone else out here. Moblit will circle the perimeter and hold the horses with Sasha and Eren. Mikasa, Reiner and Jean, you will be with Levi and I inside the forest. We’ll leave just before sundown. We’ll be travelling there on horseback and giving Moblit and his squad the horses to look after, and then go in on gear and foot. We’ll make our way in and search as far as we can before retreating. Until then, get some rest, ask any questions; whatever.”

With the wave of his hand, the cadets fell out of their trance while listening to him and they either dispersed and began to set out their belongings, only a few wanting to pry further.

“Do you think that this is known by other people in the walls?” Reiner asked, and Erwin let out a small sigh.

“I’m not sure. It’s a possibility, but until we figure out what is going on in there, then we can’t be sure. That’s why it’s best to continue acting like this is nothing more than a small outing. And when we return, I expect this to stay among the people here. Not even the other people in your division should know about this before we tell them.”

The blonde nodded obediently, satisfied, and with that, everyone began to settle in. They sorted out their sleeping bags and spoke amongst themselves, ate their rations for the day and some took quick naps to be rested for the long day ahead. They rotated in shifts, keeping watch in pairs for titans or any other activity around them, yet other than the occasional normal titans there was nothing unusual.

It didn’t help to reassure Levi, and being back in this house was no help either. There were a few drops of dried blood staining the floor that he knew belonged to him, saw the buckets they’d used, the snares Mikasa had set, and old sets of clothes they’d worn while here. The door to a pink bedroom made Levi queasy, and much to his relief, the cadets spread themselves among the living room and the girls bedroom, while the four veterans occupied what once was the master bedroom for the parents that lived here.

Dust had taken a hold of the furniture again and Levi had thought it was a bad thing, dust making his skin crawl and dirtying the place, but dust was also an amazing thing he came to realise. Dust settled on everything that hadn’t been disturbed, and that was the entirety of the house. After all, this house was outside of the walls, and Levi, Mikasa and Armin had been the last ones here months ago. Though, the thinner layer of dust, not as equally built up as everywhere else and in some places non existent, clean by the pink bedrooms window frame and sill, told him otherwise.

As much as Levi wasn’t looking forwards to reaching the forest, full of monsters that moved too quietly for him to notice, that knew his name somehow, he didn’t think he wanted to spend too much time in this house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoyed the intro so far, feel free to leave a kudos or a comment, I love hearing all your feedback! Also, I have some cool news I guess, if you don’t follow my Tumblr. 
> 
> Yes, I am open to requests (under 1K words) and commissions (1K+), or if you simply want to support me in anyway, I have a Ko-Fi. Obviously none of this is necessary, but if you want to see me write a short Drabble or a longer story with a specific plot/prompt just for you (it can be personal and unposted so only you can read it, or I can post it if you want) then you are able to do so!  
> If you can’t message me on Tumblr personally to discuss this if you are interested, then feel free to comment another platform (kik, Instagram, email, etc) and if i have it I’ll tell you my account!
> 
> With that out the way, though, I hope you enjoy this!


	2. Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooh, this gets angsty. Some answers are revealed, and more to come in a clearer form. Until then, enjoy this angst-chapter.

“If no one has returned by sunrise tomorrow, do what you think you must. Scout the edges of the forest, return to the walls, whatever.”

Hange nodded seriously at Erwin. She was obviously bummed at the fact she wouldn’t be there to witness whatever they might find in the forest, but she was happy to hold the base here with Armin while they left. Levi felt distantly sorry for Armin.

“Don’t you worry, Commander. You can trust me here!” She stated, her heels clicking together. Beside her, Armin nodded, standing tall and looking determined. Since they’d returned to the walls Armin had been working hard on improving himself – training more often, getting tips from other people who excelled in areas that he lacked in, and Levi was proud of the kid. He was doing well.

“Good,” Erwin said, and then he turned to the rest of the room.

“Are you all ready?” He asked. Nods answered him. “Understand what you’re doing?” Again, nods. Satisfied, Erwin guided the way outside with a lingering look at Hange and the cadet by her side. They got their horses ready swiftly to ride out, only carrying some water, bandages and torches rather than their usual full kit. It had since stopped raining though the ground was littered with puddles and mud sloshed under hooves as they pounded through the darkness and towards the forest that made the hairs on Levi’s neck stand tall.

Tension rippled in the air, their duties weighing down heavily on their shoulders. The cadets were stony-faced and gripping their reins with white knuckles. Levi felt distantly sorry for them. If they were in the middle of some huge conspiracy right now, then they’d just been dragged into all of this. They’d already seen so much for their age.

 Life was cruel though, and if someone understood that, then it was Levi.

If it had been his power, then the people surrounding him right now would have been his elite scouts who worked like they could read each others’ minds. But everyone save for two people who he trusted like that had died.

Levi looked to Erwin, riding by his left side. Not everyone, though.

The ride was tense, even the cadets too tense to talk much. They all felt weighed down by the situation at hand and the possibility of it to blow out of proportion if there really was something in that forest, and if anyone inside the walls already knew about it. They faced only one titan on the way there, all others seeming to disappear as the sun went down, and Mikasa was swift to end it with an easy slice to the nape. Otherwise, the ride was uneventful and uncomfortable.

The forest approached them quickly, trees standing tall, threatening and inconspicuous, dark against the sky, and Erwin called everyone to a stop once they wound through a few trees, just out of sight of anyone looking into the forest.

“We split here,” Erwin said, sliding off his horse and urging everyone not in Moblit’s group to do so too. Levi slid his hand along Fenrir’s neck, patting her reassuringly. She was anxious to be back here as well, pawing the ground and shaking her head disapprovingly, and when Levi tied her to a tree near Moblit she didn’t seem too happy to realise Levi was leaving her.

“If you don’t hear from any of us by sunrise, return to Hange and Armin,” Erwin said to Moblit, who nodded his head and took the reins of Erwin’s stallion. Levi’s eyes turned to Eren, looking conflicted and obviously wanting to accompany them further or also be with either Armin or Mikasa.

“Eren,” he said, and watched his eyes widen and startle, “you don’t have permission to transform. If you do, it is Moblit’s decision on whether he leaves you or uses whatever he has to and take you down. Understood?”

Levi saw the boys’ throat bob as he swallowed, glancing down at his hand and then back to Levi.

“Yes, sir,” he said firmly, fiddling with his reins. Levi let his gaze on the boy linger before turning to look back at Erwin.

“Levi and Mikasa, take the lead through here. Jean and Reiner follow, and I’ll take the back.”

Levi nodded to Mikasa, and without further hesitation, he lifted himself into the trees.

Aside from the metallic hiss from their gear, the forest was as empty as a graveyard. No branches groaned and the wind didn’t reach them as they made their way further in and the trees got closer together and thicker. Moonlight struggles to reach them down here too, and Levi remembered the way the darkness seemed to envelop everything in here, swallowed them whole, as it was now. It made his skin crawl, made him feel like he was somewhere light never reached and people died in the dirt. And then Mikasa paused to light one of their torches and Levi was being stupid.

Now aware of the fact that the titans could very easily sneak up on them, Levi was much more alert than before, constantly scanning around them and peering through the trees. He wasn’t even sure what they were supposed to be trying to find, anyway. A settlement or base, a cult, whatever. They’d know when they saw it, whatever it was.

Levi landed on a thick tree branch, taking a moment to look around the place quickly. He couldn’t see any pale, bony hands reaching out to him, no bloody teeth groaning his name. He hoped it would stay that way.

Everyone was still following him and Mikasa, and she was patiently waiting on a nearby branch, holding the lit torch away from the leaves and branches. Levi swung to the next tree, and then the next, and faltered at the sudden commotion behind him.

A titan that hadn’t been there a moment ago had burst from the trees and reached out to grab Reiner, only missing by a hair. The blonde spun around a tree, startled but quickly composing himself, and Levi quickly spun and pressed on his gas to propel himself forwards.

The titan was short and bloated, yet its’ collar bones and ribs stuck out and its’ legs were thin and wobbling, joints sharp and hard. Its’ eyes were dark and sunken and its’ hair thin and greasy, and its’ breath smelled like decay and death. Jean, who had been next to Reiner, reached its’ nape quickly and with precision, cut deep into it and watched it fall to its’ knees with a crash. Levi was ready to continue to quickly move on, but Erwin had stopped to examine the titan, which wasn’t steaming.

Levi landed softly next to him, followed by the cadets with them, and looked at the pale beast slumped against the tree, glazed eyes unfocused in front of it.

“Usually, it would begin to disintegrate by now,” Erwin said, nudging it with his toe.

“I told you they’re fucking weird,” Levi muttered, eying the veins visible under its’ thin skin. He reached out with one of his blades, prodding and then cutting its’ forearm experimentally and thinking about the pleasure Hange was missing out on here.

“Uh, sir?” Reiner said, standing by its’ back and looking up at the wound in its’ neck, bleeding sluggishly like a waterfall.

Both Erwin and Levi turned to look at the cadet, and Erwin wandered over to him.

“It looks like there’s, ah, a person there. In the nape.”

This drew attention. Everyone closed in on the back, Jean as pale as a sheet as Erwin used his gear to reach its’ nape and peer in, and then he began cutting precisely. He stained the sleeve of his uniform in red as he reached in and, with a vicious tug, pulled free a body which slid out of his grip and thumped to the ground like a sack of lifeless potatoes.

Levi heard retching as Jean stepped aside, and he didn’t blame the kid.

It was a man, short and bloated, much like the titan, though he looked like he had been dead for years, perfectly preserved but slowly decaying, as if the titan had been the only thing keeping him from rotting completely. A trail of frothy white foam slid past his blue lips, and he smelt like death incarnate.

There was something about him, though, that Levi thought was vaguely familiar. A little buzzing in the deepest part of his memory.

Erwin seemed to notice the confused look on the ravens’ face, and he asked simply; “do you recognise him?”

_“There are better people to do this for,” Farlan sighed, shaking his head, “and better ways. There’s a reason he’s the head of some shady, illegal business.”_

_“Well,” Levi said defensively, “I’ve already promised to have it done and Farlan…” He trailed off, his expression portraying all they needed to know. Farlan, sitting on the floor of their bare ‘home’, a hand resting on his concave stomach, understood. They had no money. Food had evaded them for perhaps two weeks now, and Farlan was getting too weak to go out and find any work to try and help them. Even Levi himself was wearing thin, his head spinning and stomach seizing his body with blinding cramps. He needed the work, and it was better than nothing, even if he knew it would cost him. Wounds healed after all._

_The man whom had offered him work was a well-known leader of one of the larger drug rings down here. He was dangerous and even if Levi did the job perfectly, which was a risk considering the way his head spun and hands trembled from exhaustion and starvation, he still probably wouldn’t get away without a scar to remind him of how ‘generous’ the man was for letting him do work._

_“Just,” Farlan said, “be careful. It’s not always worth it, okay?”_

_Levi promised him to be careful, but they both knew they needed the money more than they needed two unbroken hands._

_Levi didn’t actually see the man until the end of his job. He hadn’t had enough time to fully complete the job, unsurprisingly – purposefully setting up clients was one of the mans’ speciality. He had been guided through a large warehouse by two large men, and into a room in the back. He had expected an office, hoped he could speak his way out of any punishments, but the single light illuminating the cold, concrete room with one chair, bolted to the floor in the centre, drained any hopes he had._

_The man himself wasn’t even imposing. He was probably about five-foot-seven, fat, greasy, and coughed from the fat cigar in his lips. He hadn’t even touched Levi, but his presence there, ordering his henchmen what to do as he enjoyed the show with a cigar._

_“You should know, Levi, I don’t like seeing you like this.”_

_Lies._

_“I actually quite like you. Usually, you’re superb, and I can tell you’re going through some hard times right not, which is why I’m not being as bad as I should. But you understand that this is my business, and if I start handing out lollipops to slackers, then I’m just going to lose everything. So don’t take this personally. Look; I’ll even give you half of the money now, and the other half once you finish. Isn’t that nice? I didn’t hear you, sorry.”_

_Levi choked through his own blood to mutter pathetically, “yes, sir.”_

_A harsh laugh. “Good man. Take a deep breath… This’ll only take a moment.”_

 

Levi felt phantom blood clog his throat and he realised he’d been staring at the man for too long with no answer. He cleared his throat slightly, jolting out of his trance.

“Yes,” he said. “Years ago in the Underground.”

Erwin raised an eyebrow. “Did he know about the titans?”

Levi scoffed and shook his head. “Gods, no. He couldn’t have cared less about titans and walls. There’s no way he was a shifter. And anyway, if he had been, he wouldn’t be dead.”

So, that left the question of; what the fuck happened? Levi knew the man probably had tons of enemies – if he was still alive by now it would have been a miracle – but that didn’t warrant somehow being turned into titans. However, a closer look at the corpse revealed something digging into his neck – a thin rope, a quick necklace, that held a small tag. Levi bent down to pick it up, beckoning Mikasa over so he could read what was on the tag with the light from her torch.

_Robertson. 47. Death by bullet to the chest. #019._

It was like some brief file information to be able to recognise him, and it made Levi’s stomach twist in disgust. He snapped the tag off his neck and held it out to Erwin. The cadets were watching them tensely, keeping an eye out for any more titans approaching them.

“Someone found him after he had died, and,” Levi waved at the titan corpse, slowly, pathetically steaming into nonexistence, “turned him into a titan?” The last part sounded more like a question, uncertain if that was the case. Erwin put the tag into his pocket and then nodded grimly.

“It almost seems that way,” he agreed, pressing his lips together and looking over everyone. “We’ll keep going further in,” he said, stepping around the body, “and we’ll check the napes of any other titans we encounter in case there’s any other bodies.”

It urged everyone around to compose themselves quickly, even Jean, who was looking better at the idea that he hadn’t actually killed the man. Levi and Mikasa fell into the lead, only pausing to light a new torch once the previous one had burnt out. Levi had to keep himself going at a reasonable pace rather than speeding through the air to reach the centre of the dense forest as swiftly as physically possible. Occasionally, he would pause on a tree to check everyone was still with him and they hadn’t been grabbed and thrown against a tree or something.

The next titan they approached was a tall, slim thing with feminine features and long, thin hair. It stayed on its’ knees, head tilted back and watching the Scouts swing past and then round back to them. It only reached out slowly at them half-heartedly, not even properly going to grab any of them, and it slumped against a tree in front of it when Levi sliced into its’ nape. His anchors thudded into its’ shoulder as he held himself onto it, looking further into the smelling mess of its’ neck until he spotted the body of a slender, petite woman. A face he recognised often standing outside of a brothel in the Underground.

_Maria. 23. Death by complications with sexually transmitted diseases and poor health. #023._

The third titan held a drug dealer, the fourth a gang member, and the fifth a shop keeper. All from the Underground, with their names, ages, causes of death and a number.

The sixth, however, brought some variety. It wasn’t someone he personally recognised, though Erwin did. A young man in filthy Scout uniform. Cause of death; titan attack.

Although none of them voiced it, it was clear that they all believed in the same thing happening; someone using the deceased of the Underground or forgotten bodies outside, people and bodies that wouldn’t be missed, to turn into titans, or failed titan shifters.

It was disgusting and it made Levi’s stomach flip at the idea, and he prayed that this really wasn’t the case. That someone was outside of the walls, taking corpses and experimenting on them to create some new army of titans.

They took a break, emotions running high and everyone needing the break to process what they had just found out. They crowded on thick tree branches high above the ground. Levi washed the blood that hadn’t steamed off his skin with some of the water he had with him, and watched the darkness beneath him suspiciously, as if he expected to see a titan’s gaping mouth rushing up to meet him.

“How far are we going?” Levi asked, breaking the tense silence. Erwin, busy with looking over the tags, glanced up at the Captain. “We’ve already got a pretty damn good idea of what’s happening.”

Erwin tipped his head slightly in a minute nod, a small sigh passing his lips.

“We’ll travel in a little further,” he said, “I’m not sure how close we are to the centre, how far we’re already in. I’d like to believe it’s only another twenty minutes ahead of us, but I can’t be certain. A little further, and then we’ll turn back and regroup with Moblit and return to Hange.”

Levi, although he itched to leave this place already, simply nodded in understanding and turned his gaze to the cadets.

“Hear that?” He asked them, and was pleased to see firm nods in reply. Levi hauled himself to his feet, only for Mikasa to stop him with a question.

“What does this mean, sir?” She asked, directing the question to both Erwin and Levi. The two veterans shared a look, and the Commander stood up, a hand on the tree trunk balancing him.

“I’m not sure,” he admitted with the shake of his head, “but for now, we’ll go in for another twenty minutes or so in case there’s anything else, and then we’ll head back. I want to return with Hange and hopefully reach the other end of the forest.”

In hindsight, they probably should have brought Hange, but Levi supposed they really didn’t believe they’d find anything like this that wouldn’t need Hange’s titan expertise.

Mikasa nodded and began to fix another torch, and they quickly set off once more.

The further they travelled into the forest, the thicker and closer the trees got, as if trying to ward them off from the base of the twisted secrets hiding away from everyone.

They’d only been travelling for probably ten minutes when there was a ruckus from approaching titans. A group of three, pushing trees out of the way so they could slide their thin limbs through to reach them. They were tall and sickly thin, one seemingly female and grinning, tripping over its’ own feet and the roots of tree to reach them. The blonde one looked grim, following more slowly and carefully and reaching out for them, and the third was fast and reckless, lashing out for them. It jumped through the trees towards Levi furiously, breaking branches and throwing everyone off course.

The torch was dowsed quickly, drowning everyone into complete darkness, and Levi’s eyes struggled to adjust to the sudden darkness. It made his chest tighten, and he cursed himself for the way he blindly lashed out on instinct, strained to hear and see through the sudden chaos.

The titans’ hand clasped around Levi’s lower leg, yanking him back sharply, but Mikasa was there to cut across its’ face to make it recoil and drop the raven, who hurried to swing away and return in time to watch it collapse to Reiner’s blades. Erwin had taken care of the blonde one and Jean was struggling with the female one. Pressing on his gas, Levi hurried over, felling the pale thing with a hiss of his blades. At some point, torches had been lit again and he could clearly see the surrounding area.

He held onto the titan as it fell forwards, its’ eyes lingering on him and making him feel almost uneasy.

“Everyone alright?” Erwin called, standing atop the blonde one’s shoulders.

“A dislocated shoulder, sir,” Jean called, leaning against a tree.

“A small burn from the torch, sir, nothing more,” Mikasa added, her hand held to her chest protectively.

Erwin nodded, sending Reiner off to help with Jean’s shoulder after he hesitantly pulled the body from the reckless titan out – a tall, skeletal man with yet another naming tag around his neck. Erwin hurried to pull the other person out of the blonde titan, and Levi got to work with the female titan.

He saw a mob of messy, red-ish hair and a horrifically dirty Survey Corps uniform, and Levi wondered just how many people they’d been forced to leave behind, and how many of those people had been taken by some sick fuck and forced to endure this torture.

With a yank, the body tumbled out of the nape, almost dragging Levi down before he caught himself and lowered himself and the body to the floor. The first thing he noticed was the lack of other Survey Corps uniform – other than a torn and dirty jacket, the girl was only wearing some ragged dress, as if it had been shoved on the body for modesty-sake. Next was the horrific scarring by her neck, and the tag accompanying it. Levi had seen the scarring on each body pulled out of the titans and often times it matched the cause of death – the first man had horrific scarring by his chest, where he assumed the fatal gunshot wound had been and had healed during his time in the titan, the ex-scouts having jagged scarring where the titan had bitten into and torn apart, and Levi suspected this was the case with the girl in front of him.

He snapped the tag necklace off her, shoving it into his pocket and then saw her gaunt face. Cloudy, dead green eyes staring in the same vacant stare he’d last seen years ago, her face still stained with blood and dirt.

Levi felt bile rise in his throat, horror steal the air from his lungs and with a trembling hand, he tore the name tag out of his pocket.

_Isabel. 20s. Death by titan attack. #031._

They hadn’t been able to take her remains back all those years ago; with Levi’s breakdown and attack on Erwin, the heavy losses and casualties, the approaching titans, they had had to evacuate with no time or space to take any more bodies.

He didn’t know what to do. He had given them a makeshift grave in the cavern with sunlight in the Underground that they used to sneak off to, had gone there every year to mourn for them, thinking that, if nothing else, they’d died outside and together. Apparently not, however, because some twisted fuck had stolen their decaying remains to turn them into titans.

Levi spun onto his hands and knees and promptly threw up the contents of his stomach. His hand curled around Isabel’s delicate, cold wrist.

He was faintly aware of talking around him, to him, a hand on his shoulder and trying to steady him, but Levi shrugged it off and turned to look at the corpse of the blonde titan. Erwin was still standing by it, a body at his feet, and watching Levi with an unreadable expression.

Levi pulled himself towards him, and looked down.

Below the waist, the half of him that had disappeared inside a titans’ mouth, was a dirty, oversized pair of raggedy trousers. Above, even dirtier, torn Survey Corps uniform, pulled back and showing the red-purple scar around his torso.

_Farlan. 20s. Death by titan attack. #032._

The onslaught of emotions drowning him was overwhelming, to the point his head spun with static and he couldn’t feel his own body, and so he reached for the familiar one; anger. The red-hot blanket of anger was like a familiar hug, fury boiling in his veins and blinding everything else. He reached for his blades, determined to set off himself, unhindered by travelling in a group, to find the bastard who had done this and make him pay in every way Levi knew possible.

A hand settled on his wrist and he stopped himself from slicing the thing clean off, turning to look at clear blue eyes.

“Stand down, Levi,” Erwin said, steady and strong, just like the first time they’d died and Levi had done the exact same, predictable thing.

Levi’s nostrils flared as he debated pulling himself from Erwin’s grip – pathetically gentle, non-restraining – and leaving the Commander in his dust, but this was Erwin. The only man who could reach him in a way no one else had, who always knew what was best, even for Levi, and who never made him regret his decision to obey him.

Levi dropped his blades.

“I’m not leaving them,” he said, finally, working through the rock in his throat that made his voice come out raw and scratchy, shaking with anger.

Erwin nodded once, let go of the Captain’s wrist and leaned down to pick up Farlan. Seeing the way the blondes’ head lolled, his eyes staring past Levi blankly, made Levi choke on a sound and have to hold himself back from tearing him away from Erwin.

“Reiner,” Erwin said, dipping his head in a gesture to Isabel. The cadet understood easily enough, having enough respect to lift the lifeless girl over his shoulder. Though Levi itched to tear both of his friends away from them, not let anyone else touch them, he knew he would be no good if he put the safety of corpses, because that’s all they were, over his own.

“If you’re ready, we’re retreating.”

Erwin led the way out, and Levi lingered a moment longer to stare at the titan corpses, bloody and steaming. He thought of each soldier they’d left behind in emergencies, who they hadn’t found, and wondered if they had been alive in the titans. Not living, really, but if the titans had kept them alive enough to go through years of horror at the hands of some monster that looked human.

Levi turned on heel, forced emotions and awareness away in favour of cold numbness, and swore to find the person responsible for this and tear them apart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, what the heck is going on? Also, no mention of the talking titan from Body Was Made? All shall be clear soon, worry not. I hope you did enjoy this chapter, however, and if you did feel free to leave what you thought of it in the comments!


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